Being a Barangay Captain is Dangerous Work

Being a Barangay captain is dangerous work. So dangerous that the LGUs have bought guns for their Barangay captains.

https://cebudailynews.inquirer.net/488628/carcar-10-brgy-chiefs-turn-over-guns-with-expired-licenses

Ten incumbent barangay captains in Carcar City turned over their firearms with expired licenses during the police’s Oplan Katok on Saturday, Feb. 11.

Ten firearms with expired licenses were accounted by the Carcar City police, said Police Lieutenant Colonel Ardioleto Cabagnot, chief of Carcar City Police Station.

Cabagnot refused to divulge the names of these barangay captains for now. They will also continue to talk and visit the remaining five barangay captains in the city to also turnover their firearms with expired licenses.

These firearms are placed under the watch of the city police station while the owners were still processing their permits to carry these guns again.

Oplan Katok, which was started in 2013, is a police operation, where police personnel would visit the houses of residents with expired gun licenses and those suspected to have unlicensed guns.

Cabagnot said that the local government unit purchased these firearms a few years ago, which were intended for the barangay captains as their additional security given the nature of their jobs.

“…kaniadto nipalit sila [LGU] firearm intended sa kapitan. It so happened nga niabot nga expire na. Lisod pod makadisgrasya sila … mas maayo maaccount ang expired firearms para di maproblema ,” Cabagnot said.

(…they (LGU) bought firearms quite a while back for the barangay captains. It so happened that their gun licenses had already expired. It is a difficult situation because they might cause an accident…it will be better if the expired firearms will be accounted for so that there will be no problems for them.)

Cabagnot said that this was also their preparation for the coming barangay election that would happen this October 2023.

How exactly is it that Barangay captains need guns due to "the nature of their jobs?" Could it be due to the fact that so many Barangay captains and councilors are routinely targeted for assassination? When a motorcycle pulls up discreetly and the rider on back starts firing that gun won't offer any protection. A security detail would offer much better protection.

But then again when a governor can be assassinated in his own home no one is safe. Politics is truly an evil ans dangerous game in the Philippines. 

Man Accidentally Kills Brother with Homemade Shotgun

It doesn't get more stupid and tragic than this:

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1029972/man-accidentally-shot-while-hunting-in-quezon

A wild animal hunter accidentally shot and killed his brother in Mauban town in Quezon province Saturday night, police said. 

A report from Quezon police said Joey Pinza, 48, and his younger sibling Ruel, 32, were hunting wild animals in the mountainous area of Barangay (village) Cagsiay 2 around 9 p.m. 

Police said Joey accidentally pulled the trigger of his homemade shotgun and hit Ruel, who was walking beside him, on the right side of his head. The victim died on the spot.

This guy and his brother are walking and all of a sudden the gun goes off and blows his brother's head open. So he was carrying the gun in his hands with the muzzle pointed at his brother? Is that right? Instead of slinging the gun over his shoulder or pointing it toward his right where his brother was not walking he decides to walk with a loaded and ready to fire homemade shotgun pointed at his brother?

Safety of all kinds goes right out the window in the Philippines. There are lots of homemade guns of all sorts floating around the country. Just search for "Philippines homemade guns" many results will show up.

philippines homemade guns

What was this guy hunting anyway?